Lobito Atlantic Railway strengthens transport capacity

The first batch of 275 new container wagons have arrived in Lobito, Angola, to strengthen the transport capacity of the Lobito Atlantic Railway (LAR)

Purchased from Galison Manufacturing in South Africa, the new 13.5 ton wagons boast a load capacity of up to 60.5 tons and are designed to each carry one 40-foot container or two 20-foot containers.

This investment comes part of LAR’s expansion and modernisation plan covering the next three years. The wagons include a modern pneumatic braking system and light steel structure to ensure safer and more efficient transport operations and, overall, will reinforce LAR’s ability to increase the volume and capacity of the railway in the coming years.

The wagons will arrive in weekly deliveries starting from this first delivery until 2026.

This announcement is but another demonstration of efforts to upgrade the regional rail infrastructure. Elsewhere, AFC signed agreements to construct 800 km of greenfield rail in relation to the Zambia Lobito Rail Project and Yapi Merkezi has won a contract to oversee the construction of the Malaba-Kampala Railway Project.